The Price of a Daughter
by Laitie
Summary: A new group of students arrives at the dojo. Six of the Dixon children. But they're not like normal children. And one in particular bodes to make the members of Team Kenshin's lives much more interesting.


"You're all here to learn Kamiya Kasshin Ryu?" Kaoru asked, looking at the group of children whose ages ranged from 6 to 16.

"Yes, ma'am," the eldest, a boy, said. His hair was dark, but like the other children, his eyes were a bright, piercing blue. "Our mother wishes to pay you handsomely for the trouble." He bent into a proper bow and handed Kaoru a letter.

Their mother? It was hard to imagine these children all had the same mother. They all looked so different! All except the youngest were obviously Western. Of those, only one did not look European. Uncertainly, she took the letter from the eldests' hand.

She almost balked at the money folded inside. This would buy beef pot for everyone in the household every day for a month! After a shocked moment, she cleared her throat.

"Certainly!" she said with a grin. "Come on in!" She stepped aside and allowed all six of the children to enter the dojo.

"Thank you, Kamiya-Sensei," the eldest said. "My name is Dixon Yakov. These are my brother and sisters. Mohammed," the only other boy had dark skin and black hair. He looked about 14, and he bowed at his name. "Elizabeth." Elizabeth had brown hair, her skin almost too pale. Her lips looked as if they were always pinched too tight together, despite looking around the same age as Mohammed. "Angela." This sister had hair the color of wheat. There was a shadow of a grin on her lips and in her clear eyes. She seemed ready to laugh at any moment. Very much like Yahiko, who seemed close in age to her. "Sofia." Sofia was certainly younger than Yahiko and Angela, but not by much. Her dark brown hair was offset by her pale skin. Her bow was clumsy and she almost lost her balance, causing Angela to giggle. A sharp look from the eldest brother silenced the girl. "And Sakura." Sakura was almost too young to have come, bouncing on her toes and so distracted that she barely remembered to bow.

"It's a pleasure to meet all of you," Kaoru said politely. "You may call me Kaoru-sensei. We will learn much from each other, I'm sure."

The Dixon children's first lesson was uneventful, to say the least. With the exception of Elizabeth, none of the children seemed to know the first thing about swordsmanship. But they all tried. And within a few days, they were already mastering the beginning basics.

"Where did you learn to use a bokken so well, Elizabeth-san?" Kaoru asked the girl one day as the other children and Yahiko were sparring.

Elizabeth shrugged. "I suppose I am just good with it," she said.

Kaoru raised an eyebrow at her. "But you've certainly shown signs that you've fought with one before," she pressed.

The girl shook her head.

"Elizabeth's embarrassed," came a voice. Kaoru and Elizabeth both jumped as they noticed Angela on the other side of Kaoru, a mischievous grin on her face.

"I am not!" Elizabeth informed her younger sister.

"Are, too!" Angela teased. She looked at Kaoru. "She doesn't talk about it because the last time she did it in front of people she-"

"Stop it!" Elizabeth yelled. In her anger, she threw something at her younger sister. Though there had been nothing in her hand before, now Angela ducked to avoid being hit by a throwing star. Instead, the star embedded itself on the wall beside her as the blond girl laughed. Everyone else in the room stopped and looked at the scene.

"Where did that come from!?" Kaoru demanded, stepping around Angela to examine the weapon.

"Elizabeth," Angela said mockingly.

"Gigi, I swear I'll-"

"Girls!" Yakov stepped closer to the three of them. "My deepest apologies, Kaoru-sensei," he told their teacher. "I'm afraid we must leave early today."

"Not until you tell me what's going on," Kaoru said. She looked at Elizabeth. "How many more of these do you have!?"

Elizabeth's face was completely red with embarrassment. She stared at the floor, frozen by her shame and anger.

"How many more do you want?" Angela asked, pretending to be polite.

"Gigi, that's enough!" Yakov said before turning back to Kaoru. "Again, my deepest apologies." His cold gaze turned to Angela. "We will be sure she does not bring any more." He turned to the rest of the room. "Time to go home," he told his siblings. Obediently, they went to put their bokken away.

Kaoru frowned and looked at Kenshin, who had been sitting and watching the lesson silently. Her eyes narrowed at him as she saw his eyes closed, his head bowed. Was he sleeping!? She stomped over to him.

"Gigi!" Kaoru stopped in her own rage to see what Gigi was doing to frustrate Yakov even further. "It is time to go home."

The middle sister was still standing in the same spot. Her arms were crossed stubbornly as she stared defiantly back at her brother. "I don't want to," she said. "I like it here." She gave another mischievous grin.

"Gigi-"

"Catch me if you can!" As soon as the words left her throat, she disappeared on the spot. Kaoru and Yahiko gasped while Kenshin lifted his head and surveyed the room.

"Mother's going to kill you!" Elizabeth called into the room. Gigi's laughter echoed throughout the dojo.

"Where is she!?" Kaoru asked. "What happened to her!?"

"Do not worry so, Kaoru-sensei," Mohammed assured her. "She's doing this to herself."

"How!?"

"It's complicated," Yakov told her. He rolled his eyes and ran his fingers through his hair. "Mohammed, take them home," he said. Mohammed nodded and the Dixon children gathered around the second-eldest.

"Thank you for teaching us," they sang in unison before leaving the dojo.


End file.
